On Monday, 13th May 2013, Signature announced that they are making changes to courses from Level 3 upwards.
At the moment, we deliver Level 3 NVQ Certificate in BSL, which is portfolio based, however from September 2013, this course will be replaced by Level 3 Certificate in BSL, which will be exam based. The Qualification Specifications are not released until June 2013, so unfortunately we cannot give you full information of course content, price and length of the course, but please see below for a brief outline of the course description.
Level 3 Certificate in BSL has been introduced as a bridging course as the gap between Level 2 and Level 3 previously was too large for some candidates. Due to this, Signature will, at a later date, be introducing Level 4 NVQ Certificate in BSL, however we cannot yet confirm any details of course content. As far as we are aware, Level 6 NVQ Certificate in BSL will remain the same.
UNIT BSL/ISL 320 – Sign linguistics knowledge
This unit will develop the candidate’s knowledge and skills in BSL Linguistics and Grammar. It will also allow candidates to apply this knowledge when undertaking Units BSL/ISL321 and BSL/ISL322.
Assessment Method: Written assessment paper – This will be externally assessed by Signature.
UNIT BSL/ISL321 – Understand varied British Sign Language in a range of situations
This unit will develop the candidate’s receptive skills. At the end of the unit the candidate will be able to follow conversations and discussions at normal speed on a range of topics in work and social situations.
Assessment Method: The candidate will watch a conversation on a DVD, followed by a written assessment paper. This will be externally assessed by Signature.
UNIT BSL/ISL322 – Use varied British Sign Language in a range of situations
This unit will develop the candidate’s productive skills. At the end of the unit the candidate will be able to keep a conversation going fairly and smoothly within familiar areas.
Assessment Method: Candidate will produce an 8-10 minute presentation on a topic selected from a set provided by Signature. Candidate and teacher will then have a 10-12 minute conversation based on the candidate’s presentation. This will be externally assessed by Signature Assessors.
For more information, please see http://www.signature.org.uk/news.php?news_id=330